Colorado is now down to 29 players — 16 forwards, 11 defensemen and two goalies — and must get down to 23 in the week leading into its Oct. 5 opener at the New York Rangers.

The Avs, who improved to 3-2 in the preseason with a 4-2 victory Monday night at Dallas, are off Tuesday. They will practice Wednesday and conclude the preseason Thursday in Las Vegas against the expansion Golden Knights.

]]>http://www.denverpost.com/2017/09/26/avalanche-reassigns-reid-petryk-dominic-toninato-conor-timmins/feed/028013612017-09-26T10:41:53+00:002017-09-26T10:41:53+00:00http://www.denverpost.com/2017/09/26/avalanche-reassigns-reid-petryk-dominic-toninato-conor-timmins/Avalanche reassigns 13 players, now carrying 32http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/dp-sports-avalanche/~3/Xjq2uOsz8dE/
http://www.denverpost.com/2017/09/25/avalanche-reassigns-13-players-to-san-antonio-rampage/#respondMon, 25 Sep 2017 17:35:20 +0000http://www.denverpost.com/?p=2800037The Avalanche reassigned 13 players to its American Hockey League affiliate in San Antonio on Monday morning, trimming the preseason roster to 32 players. Colorado must get down to 23 players by opening night Oct. 5.

The only moderately surprising demotion Monday was forward Rocco Grimaldi, who scored a goal in Sunday’s 5-1 preseason victory over visiting Minnesota.

The Avs also sent young goalie Spencer Martin to San Antonio, leaving veterans Semyon Varlamov and Jonathan Bernier to man the nets in the final two preseason games — Monday at Dallas and Thursday against the expansion Golden Knights in Las Vegas.

]]>http://www.denverpost.com/2017/09/25/avalanche-reassigns-13-players-to-san-antonio-rampage/feed/028000372017-09-25T11:35:20+00:002017-09-25T11:35:54+00:00http://www.denverpost.com/2017/09/25/avalanche-reassigns-13-players-to-san-antonio-rampage/Tyson Jost makes preseason debut for the Avalanchehttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/dp-sports-avalanche/~3/MTFbIzwIMH4/
http://www.denverpost.com/2017/09/24/tyson-jost-makes-preseason-debut-for-the-avalanche/#respondMon, 25 Sep 2017 02:23:30 +0000http://www.denverpost.com/?p=2799442A year ago in the preseason, the Avalanche lost its top prospect to an ankle injury. Mikko Rantanen, selected with the 10th pick of the 2015 draft, went down during a rookie showcase game in Westminster.

This month, Colorado’s newest top prospect, Tyson Jost — the No. 10 selection of the 2016 draft — injured his groin at a rookie showcase in San Jose, Calif. It was feared Jost, 19, would miss the entire preseason, as Rantanen did the year before.

Fear not, Avalanche fans. Jost made his preseason debut Sunday against the Minnesota Wild at the Pepsi Center. He centered wingers Rocco Grimaldi and Andrew Agozzino, assisted on Grimaldi’s goal, and proclaimed himself 100 percent healthy after Colorado’s 5-1 victory.

“We wanted to be smart about it,” Jost said of his injury. “I was itching to get back on the ice, and not miss training camp. I was knocking down their door every morning, trying to convince them to let me out. But that’s one thing I have to learn about being a pro — it’s a long season. They did a great job with it, and I’m happy to get back on the ice.”

Forward Colin Wilson, who was acquired from Nashville in an offseason trade, also made his preseason debut. Wilson began training camp skating on his own, and was in a orange hands-off jersey with the team last week.

Center Nathan MacKinnon had a big game for the Avs, scoring two power-play goals in the third period from the left circle. Forwards J.T. Compher and Grimaldi scored goals to erase Minnesota’s 1-0 lead and Rantanen scored early in the third period to make it 3-1. MacKinnon assisted on Rantanen’s goal.

Goalie Semyon Varlamov played the entire game for the Avs, who fell 2-1 in Minnesota on Saturday night with a different lineup.

Footnote. The Avalanche (2-2 preseason) concludes its exhibition schedule this week with games Monday at Dallas and Thursday in Las Vegas. The regular-season opener is Oct. 5 against the Rangers in New York.

]]>http://www.denverpost.com/2017/09/24/tyson-jost-makes-preseason-debut-for-the-avalanche/feed/027994422017-09-24T20:23:30+00:002017-09-24T20:23:30+00:00http://www.denverpost.com/2017/09/24/tyson-jost-makes-preseason-debut-for-the-avalanche/Pittsburgh Penguins announce they will attend White House Stanley Cup celebrationhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/dp-sports-avalanche/~3/WMTHKuXIECo/
http://www.denverpost.com/2017/09/24/pittsburgh-penguins-white-house-celebration/#respondSun, 24 Sep 2017 19:48:07 +0000http://www.denverpost.com?p=2799158&preview_id=2799158While the sports world focused Sunday on the NFL and its reaction to recent statements by President Donald Trump, the Pittsburgh Penguins inserted themselves into the sporting world’s ongoing political discussion by issuing a statement that the team would visit the White House as part of their Stanley Cup celebration.

The Penguins, on the heels of their second consecutive Stanley Cup win this past June, still plan to visit Trump, though a date has not yet been confirmed. The Penguins released the statement at 8:45 a.m. on Sunday, right as a handful of professional athletes and owners continue to denounce recent comments and tweets Trump has issued regarding the NFL, national anthem protests and Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry’s now-rescinded invitation to visit the White House with his team.

“The Pittsburgh Penguins respect the institution of the Office of the President, and the long tradition of championship teams visiting the White House,” the Penguins’ statement reads. “We attended White House ceremonies after previous championships – touring the historic building and visiting briefly with Presidents George H.W. Bush and Barack Obama – and have accepted an invitation to attend again this year.

“Any agreement or disagreement with a president’s politics, policies or agenda can be expressed in other ways. However, we very much respect the rights of other individuals and groups to express themselves as they see fit.”

After Curry indicated he would not go to the White House, Trump responded with this tweet on Saturday morning:

“Going to the White House is considered a great honor for a championship team. Stephen Curry is hesitating, therefore invitation is withdrawn!”

This was amid a flurry of tweets regarding the sporting world’s intersection with political and social issues, and Trump continued Sunday morning by tweeting, “If NFL fans refuse to go to games until players stop disrespecting our Flag & Country, you will see change take place fast. Fire or suspend!” This makes the timing of the Penguins’ statement curious, as NFL players and coaches have spent Sunday contesting Trump’s recent comments and sharing messages of unity.

Sunday started with many players demonstrating during the national anthem ahead of the Ravens-Jaguars game in London, with players kneeling or linking arms on both sidelines. There is expected to be a major increase in national anthem demonstrations as nine more games kick off at 11 a.m.

Athletic protests of current social and political issues have mostly been concentrated in the NFL and NBA across the last two years. The Warriors have responded to Trump’s tweet about Curry by saying they will not be attending the White House at all. The Penguins, however, followed that by saying they have every intention to.

]]>http://www.denverpost.com/2017/09/24/pittsburgh-penguins-white-house-celebration/feed/027991582017-09-24T13:48:07+00:002017-09-24T15:48:10+00:00http://www.denverpost.com/2017/09/24/pittsburgh-penguins-white-house-celebration/Avalanche fall to 1-2 in preseason after loss to Wildhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/dp-sports-avalanche/~3/qtuQwPf8kxU/
http://www.denverpost.com/2017/09/23/avalanche-wild-preseason-loss/#respondSun, 24 Sep 2017 01:51:57 +0000http://www.denverpost.com/?p=2798710ST. PAUL, Minn. — Devan Dubnyk stopped 28 shots to lead the Minnesota Wild to a 2-1 preseason win over the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday.

Mikael Granlund scored and assisted on Matt Dumba’s winning goal early in the second period for the Wild.

Andrew Agozzino scored for the Avalanche, and Jonathan Bernier had 22 saves.

Granlund’s goal on a wrist shot at 7:48 of the first period put Minnesota ahead 1-0, and Dumba’s slap shot doubled the lead 2 1/2 minutes into the second. Both scores came on the power play.

Agozzino pulled the Avalanche within one a little more than 2 minutes later.

Minnesota finished 2 for 5 with the man-advantage, and Colorado was 0 for 8.

]]>http://www.denverpost.com/2017/09/23/avalanche-wild-preseason-loss/feed/027987102017-09-23T19:51:57+00:002017-09-23T19:51:57+00:00http://www.denverpost.com/2017/09/23/avalanche-wild-preseason-loss/Nail Yakupov hopes to resurrect once-promising career with the Avalanchehttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/dp-sports-avalanche/~3/fxyLbM19bRg/
http://www.denverpost.com/2017/09/23/nail-yakupov-career-resurrection-avalanche/#respondSat, 23 Sep 2017 17:52:48 +0000http://www.denverpost.com/?p=2798465Newcomer Nail Yakupov and many of his Avalanche teammates are kindred spirits when it comes to resurrecting a young career.

Yakupov, the No. 1 pick in the 2012 draft, hasn’t done anything spectacular since leading the Edmonton Oilers with 17 goals in the lockout-shortened 48-game season of 2012-13. And the Avs? Well, they have a handful of high-profile 20-somethings coming off the worst year of their careers.

“Every year is important for everyone in this locker room,” Yakupov said. “This team, they didn’t have a good year last year. And me? I wasn’t really happy about my year as well. Now we move forward and just try to have fun and play the game.”

The Russian-born Yakupov, who turns 24 on Oct. 6, was traded from Edmonton to the St. Louis Blues just before last season began. He played in just 40 games and had only three goals for the Blues.

Yakupov became a free agent July 1 and agreed to terms with the Avalanche on July 4 to a modest one-year, $875,000 contract. He was making $2.5 million with the Oilers/Blues.

“They had really good interest in me,” Yakupov said of the Avs, who finished with a league-low and club-record worst 48 points last season. “I talked to them a few times and the agents were working on it. I’m happy. I want to be here. I know a few of the guys already and it’s a good group.”

Yakupov mostly has been playing left wing on a line with Duchene, the center, and rookie Alex Kerfoot.

“That line has been really good in camp. All three of those guys,” Avs coach Jared Bednar said. “I think they’ve found a little chemistry there. Hopefully that will continue and get better and better.”

When asked if he thinks Yakupov will be used in a top-six forward role to begin the season, Bednar quickly said: “Yes.”

“There’s no doubt that he’s talented. There’s no doubt he has a lot of skill,” Landeskog said of Yakupov. “He had some injuries, some tough seasons, but we’re happy that he’s here. What I’ve seen from him so far, I’m really impressed.”

]]>http://www.denverpost.com/2017/09/23/nail-yakupov-career-resurrection-avalanche/feed/027984652017-09-23T11:52:48+00:002017-09-23T15:28:45+00:00http://www.denverpost.com/2017/09/23/nail-yakupov-career-resurrection-avalanche/Avalanche tough guy A.J. Greer says his nastiness comes naturallyhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/dp-sports-avalanche/~3/tbzCH6X_NW4/
http://www.denverpost.com/2017/09/22/aj-greer-avalanche-tough-guy/#respondFri, 22 Sep 2017 19:36:13 +0000http://www.denverpost.com/?p=2797685Avalanche rookie A.J. Greer emerged from the trainer’s room Thursday night with a bloody right hand, which was protected by a surgical glove. He said the wound was from a previous fight — not the one he had just been in with Dallas’ Greg Pateryn.

Pateryn got the better of Greer in that fight midway through the third period, but Greer, 20, wasn’t deterred from his game. After serving his five-minute major for fighting, Greer and the Stars’ Julius Honka drew roughing minors from an incident in front of the Dallas net.

Greer, 6-foot-3 and 204 pounds, is trying to break into the NHL as a power forward with an edge.

“It’s a big part of his game. He’s an abrasive guy out there,” Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said of Greer after Friday’s practice. “We saw it through rookie camp. We saw it in Burgundy/White (scrimmage). The key for him is to continue to do that against NHL opponents. We’ve talked about him. He’s a hungry guy. He’s pushing to make our hockey club and I think that’s the way he’s got to play.”

Greer says playing angry hockey comes naturally.

“I’m a big body out there and I have to disturb people to get under their skin,” he said. “It’s my job, and I play better when I’m able to get under their skin.”

The Avalanche selected Greer with the 39th pick of the 2015 draft. He played five NHL games last season, and 63 for San Antonio of the American Hockey League. He amassed 38 points (15 goals) and 78 penalty minutes, second most on the team.

Because of guaranteed contracts, Greer might not make Colorado’s opening-night roster. But he seems to be among a handful of young forwards who will be called upon when injuries occur.

“Just happy to put on the Avs jersey,” Greer said. “We’ll see what happens.”

Footnotes. Forward Tyson Jost practiced Friday with the team for the first time in a week. He had been skating on his own since sustaining a minor groin injury. Bednar said Jost likely will play in at least two of the three upcoming preseason games. The stretch begins Saturday at Minnesota, and continues Sunday against the Wild at the Pepsi Center and at Dallas on Monday. … Defenseman Sergei Boikov suffered a dislocated shoulder in Thursday’s game and is out indefinitely. Boikov, 21, was pegged to play for San Antonio. … The Avs reassigned three players Friday, sending left wing Travis Barron back to his junior team and centers J.C. Beaudin and Julien Nantel to San Antonio. … Bednar said goalie Jonathan Bernier will start Saturday and Monday, with Semyon Varlamov playing Sunday.

Avalanche defenseman Nikita Zadorov finally reported to training camp Thursday morning, nearly a week after signing a contract extension. The 22-year-old Russian was held up in Ottawa, Ontario, because of issues with his immigration papers.

“It usually takes a few days to get it,” Zadorov said from the Pepsi Center, where some of his teammates had participated in a morning skate in preparation for Thursday’s preseason game against the Dallas Stars. “With the situation with Russia and America right now, it’s kind of tough. But it’s nice to get it done.”

Zadorov had a physical and off-ice testing, before watching the Avs score three times in the first 5:09 of the game and gonwent on to beat Dallas 5-1. He will practice with the team Friday in split-squad sessions at Family Sports Center.

Colorado visits the Minnesota Wild on Saturday to begin a four-game stretch in six days to wrap up the exhibition season.

“I have a few preseason games left, right? So I’m going to play some of them and hopefully get my level back right away,” said Zadorov, who has been training in Ottawa. “But I’ve been skating great. … Let’s get the season going already. I’m ready.”

Zadorov played down his opportunity to skip an NHL season to play for a Moscow-based team in the Kontinental Hockey League — a scenario that would have made him eligible to represent Russia at the Olympics in February. Zadorov tentatively had an agreement to play for CSKA Moscow.

“I told (Avs general manager) Joe (Sakic) in July we’re not planning to go to KHL, it’s not what I want, I want to play in the best league in the world,” Zadorov said. “I’m still 22 years old, so I got a few Olympics to go, right? If I miss this one it’s not a big deal. But I’ll always respect my country. I love my country. I’m totally Russian and for sure anytime they call me I’m ready to go.

“But in this situation my hands are tied. It’s not my decision not to go to Olympics. This is my league, that’s my team, that’s where I’m playing. If players from NHL can’t go to Olympics, it is what it is.”

Zadorov, a left-handed shot, is pegged to serve in Colorado’s top pairing with right-handed Erik Johnson.

“We’re excited. He’s been texting me every day. He wants me to be here and was happy I came today,” Zadorov said. “I’m real excited to play with him. He’s great player and we had great chemistry last year.”

Footnotes. Center Matt Duchene, who is unhappy with team management and expecting to be traded, made his preseason debut against the Stars and wore an “A” as alternate captain. Duchene shared an “A” with Nathan MacKinnon last season. Duchene, who scored to give the Avs a 5-0 lead against the Stars, politely declined to answer questions after the morning skate. … David Warsofsky, Sven Andrighetto and Sergei Boikov scored at 2:11, 4:03 and 5:09 into Thursday’s game. Alex Kerfoot made it 4-0 in the second period when he redirected a a Warsofsky shot. Goalie Semyon Varlamov played the entire game for the Avs. … Rookie forward Tyson Jost remains out with a groin injury. He did not practice with Thursday’s scratches after the morning skate at the Pepsi Center. Defenseman Tyson Barrie, however, is back with the team after missing some time with a slight shoulder injury. … Colorado had a more veteran lineup than what it had Tuesday in a 4-1 loss to the visiting Vegas Golden Knights. Duchene centered Kerfoot and Nail Yakupov. The second line had rookie J.T. Compher between Gabe Landeskog and Andrighetto. … Four defensemen fighting for opening-night roster spots — Chris Bigras, Warsofsky, Anton Lindholm and Andrei Mironov — were in the lineup.

Warsofsky, the Avalanche prospect who played in the Pittsburgh Penguins‘ organization last season, was at every practice, every team meeting, and every other mandatory event in the Pens’ run to winning the Stanley Cup in June. The 5-foot-8 defenseman played just nine regular-season games but was among Pittsburgh’s playoff “black aces” — the best of what the team had from its minor-league affiliate in Wilkes-Barre, Pa.

Because he didn’t play the minimum 41 regular-season games or one game in the Stanley Cup Final, Warsofky’s name was not engraved on the Cup and he did not order a ring.

But he’s now in position to make the Avalanche’s opening-night roster, and expected to play in Thursday’s second preseason game against the Dallas Stars at the Pepsi Center.

His journey with the Penguins has prepared him to play for the Avs.

“I got called up at the beginning of the year and then a little more in the middle,” Warsofsky, who had a terrific 2016-17 season for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, said of his time in Pittburgh. “Things really didn’t work out towards the end of the season. But it was good to go down to Wilkes-Barre and kind of get my confidence back, and that helped put me in the position I am today.”

Warsofsky, 27, signed with the Avalanche as a free agent July 1. The former Boston University Terrier from Marshfield, Mass., is among six or seven candidates to win three or four jobs on Colorado’s blue line. Warsofsky, who had 16 goals and 47 points in 58 AHL games last season, is perhaps the favorite to solidify a job along with Erik Johnson, Nikita Zadorov, Tyson Barrie and Mark Barberio.

“I can’t say I know a whole lot about him, but he’s a Boston guy, he came in in good condition, he moves the puck well and, let’s face it: there’s huge openings on our blue line,” Johnson said of Warsofsky. “There’s jobs to be had and he’s definitely in the mix. He’s looked great.”

Warsofsky likes his chances. He’s competing for a spot with fellow veteran Jared Cowen, 26, who is on a professional tryout contract, and a handful of rookies. Warsofsky is the smallest of the bunch, but probably the quickest.

“When you’re in position like I am, and you can make break-out passes and get the puck to the open forwards, good things are going to happen,” Warsofsky said. “Twenty years ago I don’t think someone like me could make it in the NHL. But the way with the team is going nowadays, teams need (speed) from the back end and do the things I can do. I can definitely be useful, whether it’s the 5-6 pair or (top-four). I’m clean getting out of our own end and I can jump up into the rush and getting scoring opportunities. I can help contribute.

Footnote. The Avalanche had Wednesday off but reassigned three players to lower its preseason roster to 48. Defensemen Gage Ausmus and Nicolas Meloche were sent to AHL affiliate San Antonio and forward Ty Lewis was returned to his junior team in Brandon, Manitoba.

SHANGHAI — As the Vancouver Canucks held their first practice in Shanghai before their exhibition game with the Los Angeles Kings, a dense fog settled over the ice. The humidity in the arena was high and the players could barely see the puck.

Large dehumidifiers were rolled in and the mist eventually cleared, but the NHL has perhaps a bigger visibility problem in China — a country with little tradition of winter sports, hockey included. The league is hoping to turn that around with a major push in the country, beginning with its first two preseason games between the Canucks and Kings in Shanghai and Beijing this week.

The timing couldn’t be better for the NHL. With Beijing set to host the 2022 Winter Olympics, the government is putting a massive emphasis on developing winter sports. Hockey training programs and youth leagues are expanding across China, and the nation’s first professional team, the Kunlan Red Star, plays in Russia’s Kontinental Hockey League.

With interest on the rise, the NHL believes it now has an opportunity to crack a market that has traditionally been more fixated on basketball and soccer.

“You don’t quite know what to expect the first time the game is coming here, but I’ve always believed that hockey is a game you need to see live,” Los Angeles Kings coach John Stevens said after Wednesday’s practice. “And once you see it live, you become hooked as a fan.”

A glance at the numbers shows just how far the NHL has to go. According to the International Ice Hockey Federation, China has just 1,101 registered players, compared with nearly 556,000 in the U.S. and more than 631,000 in Canada.

And the fan base in a nation of more than 1.2 billion people is still in its infancy. On Weibo, the Chinese equivalent of Twitter, the NHL has just 47,000 followers, some of whom are obviously new to the sport. (One posted a question about the temperature of the arena and what was suitable to wear to the game.) The NBA, which hosted its first preseason exhibition games in China in 2004, boasts more than 33 million followers on Weibo.

“We’re learning a lot about how to market here and we’re learning a lot about how tickets are sold,” says David Proper, the NHL’s executive vice president of media and international strategy. “We’re just viewing this as Year 1 of a multi-year project and in Year 1 we may not knock it out of the park . but we can still build over time.”

Media exposure certainly helps. State broadcaster CCTV now televises five games per week to Chinese audiences and the Internet giant Tencent streams 14 games per week on its digital platforms, including the Stanley Cup playoffs.

The NHL also has an influential partner on the ground in Zhou Yunjie, the billionaire founder of a Chinese drinks packaging company who has devoted significant time and resources to building the game he fell in love with as a youth in Beijing. Zhou’s company, ORG Packaging, is the presenting partner for this week’s exhibition games.

“Hockey was actually quite common in northern China back in the ’60s and ’70s, so there is a foundation among the kids in those areas,” Zhou told The Associated Press at his company’s newly opened hockey training base in a Beijing suburb, which includes a fully stocked gym, physical therapy room and a hotel for players attending training camps.

Zhou said China’s hockey revival should focus on both universities and a professional league, using the North American, northern European and Russian systems as models.

“It will take time before ice hockey really becomes like a religion with young people as it is in the West,” he said. “But ice hockey will definitely catch on with lots of kids.”

One thing that will certainly help is developing a home-grown star similar to Yao Ming in basketball and Li Na in tennis. There are promising signs on this front, too.

Song Andong became the first China-born player to be drafted in the NHL two years ago, selected by the New York Islanders. The 20-year-old Song has committed to play at Cornell this season.

On Monday, the Vancouver Canucks signed 21-year-old Sun Zehao to an amateur tryout contract to serve as the team’s third goaltender for the China preseason games.

“He’s working with our goalie coach,” Vancouver coach Travis Green said. “He liked how quick (Sun) was, how competitive he was. . I just think it’s a great experience for him.”

The NHL should also get a boost in China as excitement builds for the 2022 Olympics. The league angered its players by deciding not to interrupt its season to allow them to take part in the 2018 Games in South Korea in February. That stance may change for 2022 in the much larger Chinese market.

To some, skipping the Pyeongchang Olympics is a missed opportunity to gain a bigger foothold in China.

“With 2022 coming up, winter sports are taking the leading focus of all sports in China right now — more so than football,” said Mark Dreyer, founder of the China Sports Insider website. “They’ll be promoting the Korea Olympics more than ever before.”

For now, the league is focused on taking its first baby steps in China, giving spectators in Shanghai and Beijing a good show.

“It’s going to be pretty cool, especially for people who have never really experienced it before,” Kings forward Tanner Pearson said. “It’s going to hopefully start something good here.”